Berkley OKs 'Backup' Fire Agreement With Pleasant Ridge

The Berkley City Council sought to reassure concerned Pleasant Ridge residents Monday night that a fire protection agreement between the two cities, which are considering a public safety partnership, is only a backup plan should anything change in their contract with Ferndale.

Pleasant Ridge, which has its own police force, has contracted fire services through the city of Ferndale for the past 88 years. But, that would change if Berkley and Pleasant Ridge decide to form a single public safety department. A public safety department consists of officers who are trained in both police and fire protection services. Berkley and Oak Park both have such departments.

Gov. Rick Snyder has encouraged local governments to consolidate services in order to qualify for statutory state-shared revenue funds.

"I think this is the first time we're going to take a small step toward it," Berkley City Manager Jane Bais-DiSessa told the standing room-only crowd at , adding that Pleasant Ridge had requested the action be taken.

The fire agreement passed Monday night ensures that services would not be disrupted if the Ferndale Fire Department contract does not go through or if Pleasant Ridge decides to terminate the contract. Pleasant Ridge has to give Ferndale a two-year notice before it can do so. The current contract ends June 30.

"After two years, if we have a public safety department ready to go, we won't need the fire protection agreement," Pleasant Ridge City Manager Sherry Ball said Monday afternoon. "If we don't have public safety ready, we'll still have fire protection."

Bais-DiSessa added Monday night that public hearings will be held to educate residents about the nascent public safety plan before any decision is made.

"I would like to assure everyone this contract will only go into effect if something happens between Pleasant Ridge and Ferndale," she said.

Councilwoman Lisa Platt Auensen sought to clarify that the council was not voting on a merger of the Pleasant Ridge Police Department with the . Nor was the council voting for Pleasant Ridge to terminate its agreement with Ferndale, she said.

"This is simply a backup fire plan," Platt Auensen said.

But Ferndale Fire Chief Kevin Sullivan, who also is a Pleasant Ridge resident, appeared indignant over the implication of the fire agreement.

"I'd like the record set straight that we'd never not provide Pleasant Ridge (with fire services), regardless of what kind of contract negotiations are going on," he said.

Pleasant Ridge's contract with Ferndale costs approximately $300,000 a year, but it has been as high as $430,000, Sullivan said earlier Monday. Ferndale Interim City Manager Mark Wollenweber said Monday afternoon the contract is continually being renegotiated. Sullivan added that in the fiscal year ending 2013, the contract will cost Pleasant Ridge $265,000.

Under the agreement with Berkley, Pleasant Ridge would pay $104,000 for the year beginning July 1, 2013; $109,000 for the year beginning July 1, 2014; and a price to be set in 2015, if needed.

Audience members at the Berkley City Council meeting expressed dismay that there was not more public outreach  before the vote. Individuals also expressed worries about response times and quality of service should the departments merge.

A tearful Marcia Levenson of Pleasant Ridge stepped to the podium to drive home the latter point.

She explained that her father, 81, recently was struck by a vehicle on Woodward Avenue. The family didn't know what had happened, she said, and Beaumont Hospital where he was transported didn't have their contact information. So, a member of the Pleasant Ridge Police Department dialed her cell phone and told her to rush to the hospital and say goodbye.

"That's why having a police force that knows you is important," Levenson said, fighting back sobs.

BPSD Director Richard Eshman said he sympathized with the speakers' concerns, which will be considered as a public safety collaboration is studied. But, he urged them to consider the positives of a public safety setup, including that all officers would be trained first responders and that combining functions would mean more police on the streets.

"The most important issue is to enhance service to the communities," Eshman said.

Councilman Dan Benton also sought to allay some of the concerns.

"Knowing (Eshman) and (BPSD Deputy Director Robert North) the way I do," Benton said, "if we can't protect our citizens and Pleasant Ridge's citizens this (public safety collaboration) will not be their recommendation to this body."

Stay tuned to Berkley Patch for more information about a possible public safety collaboration between Berkley and Pleasant Ridge.